


Shift

by Aurora077



Series: Communication [3]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Angst, Communication, Crush, F/M, Friendship, Love, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Realisations, post new york special
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-04
Updated: 2021-01-04
Packaged: 2021-03-15 03:02:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,306
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28556574
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aurora077/pseuds/Aurora077
Summary: Marinette gets clarity in New York….but not the kind she expected.
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Series: Communication [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1942273
Comments: 2
Kudos: 29





	Shift

Disclaimer: I own nothing but the plot.

* * *

“ **NO!**!” 

Ladybug pushed him out of the way, narrowly avoiding the waves of sound sent by the akuma, which would have painfully dismembered them if it had touched either of them.

It was one of the more brutal akumas they’d faced and not because he was particularly skilled or cunning but because his power was one that would now join their nightmares. 

The akuma was called The Butcher. They hadn’t yet managed to glean what his grievance was exactly (“ _Butcher_ they called me! I’ll _show_ them butcher!” he had ranted and raved) but whatever had caused him to get akumatised led to half of Paris becoming a mass of disembodied limbs and heads. He wasn’t particularly smart but he was vicious. Hawkmoth had seemed to be sending out more and more violent akumas since they came back from New York. It was as if he was more desperate than usual.   
This one was massive. Big and burly with a chainsaw attached to one arm, a tactical belt strapped around his waist, and a penchant for chopping up people apparently. He reminded Chat of Jorgen Von Strangle from one of those American cartoons they’d watched in the hotel. Hawkmoth was in New York too and Chat wondered if he’d somehow taken inspiration from the character because it was uncanny. Also, it proved how unoriginal he was. 

Luckily The Butcher didn’t actually physically chop up anyone. Unluckily everyone touched by the sound-wave emitted from the incredibly loud chainsaw was perfectly divested of all their limbs which remained floating around the akuma in a grotesque parody of a tornado. It was proving difficult to navigate and plan with all of them hiding him. The limbs would also lash out at them if they got too close and there were too many to cataclysm. Thank heavens the eyes were closed on the heads….it made him feel extra queasy thinking of them looking at him.Worse was _recognising_ them.

Chat had never seen Ladybug look so frantic in the middle of an attack….and she’d never pushed him out of the way while he was trying to push _her_ out of the way.

He grabbed her and pole vaulted behind a chimney for them to catch their breaths and to avoid some straggling limbs trailing behind, making grabbing motions at them. 

Wide-eyed he looked at her for an explanation but she seemed so distraught he didn’t have the heart to question her. And he did have bigger things to be worried about at the moment.

“I don’t want to drag this out Chat,” she said after regaining her composure slightly. “Okay, you know I’ll follow your lead. What’s the plan?” 

She narrowed her eyes. 

“Lucky Charm!” 

And as if luck was on the same wavelength as her that day, she received a massive scythe. 

“Perfect,” she smirked darkly.

Chat got shivers at the expression on her face and he wasn’t sure it was only the good kind. The glint in her eyes seemed murderous. He was getting some grim reaper vibes.

“Okay so I distract him while you hook the key-chain with the scythe?” he said, eyeing the akuma who was hiding behind the piles of floating limbs. He had his back turned at just the right angle for her to cut away the chain link of the flimsy key-chain hooked on to The Butcher’s belt which they suspected was the object that housed the akuma.

“Oh no. _You_ are going to stay right here where it’s safe...and _I_ am gonna bring him his worst nightmare.”

Before he could even respond she jumped into the maelstrom of bloodied limbs and slashed through them, managing to get the chain cut while she was at it. Unfortunately The Butcher managed to catch the key-chain. 

Chat was about to jump in and serve as a distraction regardless of what she said, when Ladybug let out a feral scream and charged at the akuma.

“Oh no you don’t,” she growled, dodging a blast from the chainsaw and slashing The Butcher’s hand clean off, the key-chain slipping from his now limp fingers as the massive hand fell to the ground. 

She grabbed the key-chain and smashed it, purifying the butterfly that came out and sending it on it’s way before casting the cure.

Everything was silent for a moment and Chat watched her in shock. The victim had turned back to an ordinary looking man in a doctor’s coat. He had a scalpel in his hand and an innocuous key-chain of the Eiffel Tower lay on the ground next to him. Ladybug seemed frozen until a beeping came from her earring signifying she had 2 minutes left. She broke out of her stupor and cast a terrified glance around as if now noticing her surroundings. She promptly leaped away with her yo-yo, foregoing their customary fist bump and leaving him alone with the victim. 

“What happened,” groaned the man, dropping the scalpel as if it burned. Well it looked like it was up to him then.

“You were akumatised sir. But it’s okay now. We’ve taken care of it.”

The man’s eyes widened and started to water.

“I’m so sorry,” he sniffed, spotting the key-chain on the ground and clutching it to him. By this time the news crew had arrived (they’d promptly forgotten being dismembered in lieu of catching a story).

“If I may ask,” called Nadja, sticking a microphone in his face, “What happened while we were….incapacitated. What could have happened to have caused all of this horror?”  
A little annoyed he kept his model smile on his face, “I was just about to find out Madame Chamack. I will keep you updated when I do, but for now the victim takes priority.”   
“Of course Chat Noir,” she said, not even questioning the absence of Ladybug. By now they all knew if the heroes timers were counting down they would not be granted an audience. Since Chat had not used his cataclysm he would be able to stay back and give them a briefing. Nadja went off to interview bystanders and he was able to find out while taking the man home that he was a top surgeon that had failed to save the life of a sick child whose parents blamed him for the death of their son. It was a complicated surgery and the child had a 50/50 chance and though he understood their grief, he was also grieving. It wasn’t easy to lose a patient and he had adored the little boy who gave him the key-chain and told him his wish was to be able to make it to the top of the Eiffel Tower and see Paris from up high one day. 

When they heard the news they went to his boss demanding he be fired, calling him a butcher who could only chop up people and not fix them like he was supposed to. 

That was when Hawkmoth had decided to take advantage of his emotions and make him a literal people butcher. 

Hawkmoth sickened him. He was holding Paris hostage emotionally. When even a baby could be used by this man, who was safe? Even an actual baby wasn’t allowed to cry without being taken advantage of. 

As he gave Nadja his statement his mind was far away. Ladybug had not seemed like herself. And if he was sickened by Hawkmoth he could only imagine the pressure she had on her shoulders thinking of it. It was the first time she had ever done that kind of damage to an akuma. He would give her some space but he left a message for her to meet him the next day at their usual spot on the Eiffel Tower.

They needed to talk about...whatever that was. 


End file.
